- chapter 46: Music and musical instruments in Etruria –
Percussion instrumentsPercussion instruments are less visible than string or wind instruments in Etruscan
images, but they do occur and they are also present in the archaeological record.^31 One of
the earliest attested instruments in Etruria overall is the rattle which occurs between the
middle of the ninth century bce and the end of the seventh century bce.^32 The examples
that survive are mostly made of clay, but bronze examples do exist. Interestingly, rattles
are found almost exclusively in female burials.^33 Another percussion instrument that
occurs is the crotalum, an instrument similar to modern castanets that consists of two
pieces of metal, bone or wood.^34 Together with the tympanum, or hand drum, they are the
instruments most associated with dancers.
There seem to have been no sistra in Etruria. The only possible exception is an ivory
example in the British Museum, which for a long time was thought to have come from
Orvieto and date to the Orientalizing period. A recent investigation however suggests
that it is in reality a second–fi rst century bce instrument from Campania.^35
A peculiar form of sound-creating device is the so-called rattling cup (Fig. 46.9).
There are only two known examples from Etruria, found at Veii and (probably) Chiusi,
dating to the late seventh–early sixth century bce and the late sixth or fi fth century
bce respectively.^36 Both are drinking vessels that were made with a void containing clay
pellets so that they would rattle if shaken. It has been suggested that they were used as
rhythm instruments by dancers cleaning off the table following a banquet, but perhaps
it is just as likely that they were made simply for the surprise and amusement of the
drinker. There is also a unique example of a bronze bracelet in the Museo Archeologico
di Chiusi, which is hollow and contains bronze fragments that create a rattling sound
when shaken.^37
MUSIC AND INSTRUMENTS IN ETRUSCAN CULTUREThe well-known impact of Greek culture on Etruria also affected the fi eld of music.
But while it seems clear that new instruments entered Etruria through contact with
the Greek world it is impossible to say what kind of music the Etruscans played on the
newly acquired instruments. Some scholars have gone so far as to suggest that the music
of Greece and Etruria were practically identical in terms of rhythms, scales and melodic
structures.^38 It cannot be emphasized enough that this view is not built on any direct
evidence but only on the assumption that the adoption of new instruments also means the
Figure 46.9 Rattling cup from Veii, late seventh–early sixth century bce. Drawing by G. Calandra.